IELTS Reading guide for your reading section

This article will draft down some very important guides to help you prepare for the reading section. Follow the instructions and practice accordingly to get a good score in the IELTS reading section. IELTS Reading guide

Previewing IELTS Reading guide

Previewing means reading the text rapidly to have a sound idea of the topic and focus of the whole passages. It gives a basic idea about the whole things which makes easier to find the answer later because the examinee then already know where to find certain information. IELTS Reading guide

While previewing never waste time analyzing the theme or details.

Don’t do it unless you have a good speed of reading and an excellent memory.

Skimming IELTS Reading guide

Skimming means highlighting the important sentences and marking keywords, especially the reference of periods, person and criteria of something. Usually, the first sentence of a paragraph describes the theme of the paragraph and the last sentence declare the outcome or result or the writer’s opinion about the theme of the paragraph. In the middle, you are likely to get focused on the paragraph. Look information according to your question demand. Like, if you are finding the answer for Matching Heading or Summary Completion then read the whole paragraph, if you are looking for content matching, you should look in the focuses or middle sentences, if you are looking for perfect naming or opinion then look in conclusion sentences.

Analyzing question IELTS Reading guide

Read the instruction carefully and be precise about what you are asked to do. IELTS Reading guide

Notice the type of the questions, then mark the keywords and remember how you practised answering the questions.

Define what kind of answers they are demanding – specific or general. IELTS Reading guide

If there is straight kind of answers they want like name, date, place – these are easier, just be careful to find the right one. If they want analyzing question like – opinion, effect, reasons, outcome or consequences – then read the whole paragraph connected to the question and logically analyze the meaning of sentences as well as the whole paragraph.

If the question is about the whole passage like – what could be the perfect name for the paragraph? Or what is the writers view about the whole thing – you are most likely to find the answer in the last paragraph. IELTS Reading guide

Scanning IELTS Reading guide

Scanning is looking for precise information for a specific question. If you already have the idea through previewing or skimming about where the required information could be found, then go there and find the keywords you got in your question statement, mark them and then logically compare and connect with the question to find the most correct answer.

Dealing with unknown vocabulary

Check other words around the unfamiliar word. Usually, if we look through the whole sentence, you will get a sound idea about the theme which you should connect with the word to make a perception about the meaning of the required sentence. IELTS Reading guide

If the word is an academic or technical word then look for definition cause sometimes the meaning of uncommon words are described in the passage. Usually the meaning or definition of a word or term followed by IS, MEANS, IT REFERS TO, THAT IS, CONSIST OF etc. For an example – “vertigo” is a kind of disease while sufferers have ununiformed skin tone OR “horticulture” refers to produce honey in a natural way by using bees as a source of production.

Analyzing the word grammatically, like find its function as part of speech, if it is a noun, adjective or adverb etc. That will help you to understand what it means in the sentence, if not the actual meaning.

Break the words into pieces and look for suffix or prefix or origin. Like, indestructible = indestructible. Here “in” is prefixed usually added with a word to make the opposite meaning. So, this means something not destructible. Now,destructi+able= destructible. “able” is a prefix which means the possibility to happen. And, destruction is much similar to the word destroy. We can assume, destructible mean which can be destroyed and the opposite is which can’t be destroyed. So, we get the meaning of the word.

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